Dorothy Evans Lyne Fund

The DEL fund will support pilot studies conducted by teams of nurses from Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing and Johns Hopkins Hospital. These studies, which will involve patients of the Johns Hopkins Hospital, will focus on nursing interventions designed to improve patient care and outcomes, providing evidence to validate clinical practice and/or examine effectiveness of clinical care delivery systems. The fund will be administered by The Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing Office for Research Administration. Applications are accepted three times per year: March 1, July 1, and November 1. Please see the Request for Proposals (RFP) for more detail.

Goals

• Provide funding for teams of nurses to explore clinical questions
• Fund pilot studies designed to improve patient care and outcomes
• Provide experience and data with which to seek more substantial grants for further investigation
• Provide opportunities for faculty and clinical nurses to collaborate in research

• Eligibility Criteria

  All submitted proposals will be screened by the Office for Science and Innovation (OSI) to ensure that they meet the eligibility criteria before they are reviewed for scientific merit. 

  • The principal investigator must have a minimum of a Doctoral nursing degree. (Principal Investigator Eligibility)
  • The proposal must be for a pilot study (a small scale study conducted to develop instruments, test and refine procedures, or provide preliminary data prior to conducting a full research study). 
  • The study should provide experience and data with which to seek more substantial grants for further investigation. 
  • The proposal must describe a study to be conducted by a team with nurses from The Johns Hopkins Hospital or Health System and Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing. Including other health professionals for a multi-disciplinary approach is encouraged. 
  • The role of the clinical or community nurses on the research team must be clearly related to their clinical role in the Hospital or Health System. 
  • The focus of the study should be nursing interventions designed to improve patient care and outcomes. 
  • The study should be designed to provide pilot data to lead to a more substantial study that will provide evidence to validate clinical or community practice and/or examine effectiveness of clinical or community care delivery systems.
• Research Team

  The prescribed members of the research team are designed to provide mentorship for both clinical/community nurses and faculty member(s). Clinical or community nurses will be mentored in the research process by the faculty members, in areas such as research team leadership, grant writing, and the development of a program of research. Clinical or community nurses will provide mentorship in clinical/community care delivery systems. The principal investigator of the project must hold a doctoral degree in nursing.

  In describing the members and collaborative nature of the research team, the connection between the clinical or community nurse and the research question should be clear. The ideal study will marry the hospital or health system nurses’ clinical curiosity with the faculty members’ ability to transform this into a researchable design.

  The team should consist of:

  • One full-time or part-time faculty member with a primary appointment in JHUSON (this person may serve as PI or co-investigator for this study). 
  • At least one nurse whose primary appointment is within the Johns Hopkins Hospital or Health System and who has a minimum of a Master’s degree. 
  • At least one nurse who is providing clinical or community care within the Johns Hopkins Hospital or Health System. 
  • Representatives of disciplines other than nursing as optional members of the investigative team are encouraged.
• Application Procedure

  Interested applicants are required to complete the Intent to Submit form approximately two months before the application deadline. Applications will be accepted three times per year:  March 1, July 1, and November 1. 

  Proposals for projects that span up to two years will be considered. The maximum amount that will be awarded for a single project is $10,000. Consultation on application and review procedures is available by contacting the OSI - email: SON-NORA@jhu.edu.

  Submit your application

  Funds will be disbursed upon notice of IRB approval.

  Checklist

  Applications must include the following: 

  • Application Face Page
  • Detailed Budget (use NIH form Page 4) & Justification
    • JHUSON applicants should consult with Grants and Contracts Analyst for assistance 
    • JHH and JHHS applicants should consult with their departments/functional units for assistance 
  • NIH Biographical Sketch (Sample NIH Biosketch). Include one biographical sketch for each member of the team.
  • Research Plan (no more than 6 single-spaced pages using Times New Roman or Arial font types, and half inch margins)
    • Specific Aims
    • Background and Significance
    • Research Design and Methods
    • Human Subjects Involvement and Characteristics
    • Literature Cited
    • Project Timeline
  • JHHS Departments of Nursing Approval of Research Involving Nursing or Nursing Resources (Applicable only if the proposed project requires the use of nursing time and effort that are incremental to the usual or routine standard of care or if nursing staff are research participants)
    • JHH Department of Nursing Request for Approval of Nursing Research 
    • Certificate of completed JHU Human Subjects and HIPPA Training for each member of the team
      • IRB approval can be demonstrated for each member in lieu of the certificates of completion.
• Review Process

  All submissions will be reviewed initially to ensure that they meet the eligibility criteria; those that are deemed eligible will be distributed to a panel of reviewers to be judged on scientific merit.

  The review panel will consist of:

  • One School of Nursing faculty with funded research experience beyond dissertation
  • One nurse affiliated with the Johns Hopkins Hospital or Health System Department of Nursing who meets the Hopkins Nursing Principal Investigator eligibility criteria
    • Minimum of Master of Science or doctorally-prepared
    • Evidence of prior research experience as a co-investigator on at least one IRB-approved research study
  • One Johns Hopkins Hospital or Health System clinical or community nurse with a minimum of a Master’s degree and clinical expertise on the proposed project

  All members of the panel will review according to the Review Criteria and rate all applications. The panel will meet to discuss the applications and select those that will be funded. The number of meritorious proposals that are funded will be determined by the amount of funding available (based on University endowment dispersement policy).

• Post-Award Reporting Requirements

  Monthly Requirements

  An expense report is due at the end of each month, for the previous month. Copies of all receipts should be attached. Please have this turned in by the 5th of each month.

  Annual / End-of-Study Requirements

  • Annual reports that address the progress of the study are due no later than one month after completion of the study, and annually if the project extends beyond one year.
  • An Annual JHM IRB update.
  • Publication in a peer-reviewed journal is an expectation of this award. A copy of any publication of study methods and results; this includes manuscripts, abstracts and posters add should be included in the final report.
  • The final report should include:
    • a lay abstract
    • report of findings
    • a copy of the publication(s) associated with this study
    • a list of submitted or planned research proposals that have been developed as a result of the study findings and/or the collaboration.

  Submit your quarterly and/or final report here